What to Expect at the SEC's Blockchain Forum on Friday

The speaker roster includes a dozen legal, financial and technical experts, as well as several key SEC officials.

While some see an opportunity to air the industry's concerns and get a better understanding of the SEC's perspective, the forum comes at a time when some major crypto firms are taking a more aggressive tack.

The regulator sent Kik a so-called Wells Notice in November 2018, notifying the company that SEC staffers believe it violated securities laws when it raised $98 million in a token sale for its kin cryptocurrency.

Circle, Kik and others say a lack of clarity from the SEC about what is and is not a security is hurting the industry and holding back innovation in the U.S. But it does not appear as though this uncertainty will be resolved on Friday, given the lineup and agenda, not to mention legal limits on what the SEC can do.

One individual familiar with the SEC's forum told CoinDesk that they were concerned by the list of panelists for the forum.

"There's no entity that would be subject to the regulations of the SEC at issue."

"I'm sure the SEC thought hard about whom to invite in order to get the best discussion of the issues they're most concerned about."

Still, the mere fact that the SEC is engaging with the crypto industry at all is promising, said lawyer Jay Baris of Shearman & Sterling.

The SEC is opening a two-way communication flow: market participants are able to express their views, but the SEC is also able to explain why it is approaching regulation the way it is, he said.

Another panelist, John D'Agostino of DMS Governance, a provider of services to investment funds, said the industry should pay attention to the topics chosen by the SEC for the agenda.